PART III. OTHER PROVISIONS

 

§323F-31  Maintenance of services.  (a) No planned substantial reduction or elimination of direct patient care servicesat any facility shall be undertaken unless all of the following requirementsare met:

(1)  An initial determination is made by the regionalchief executive officer as to critical and emergency services which shall notbe subject to reduction or elimination pursuant to this section;

(2)  The plan of the facility to substantially reduceor eliminate any direct patient care services at the health facility shallfirst be presented to the regional system board for its approval;

(3)  Subsequent to the requisite regional system boardapproval, the regional chief executive officer shall present the plan to thecommunity in which the facility is located, at a community informationalmeeting, in order to obtain community input on the plan; and

(4)  Provided that if the regional system boardapproves the plan, the plan as approved by the regional system board shall besubmitted to the corporation board for ratification.

(b)  After the community informational meeting, butat least twenty days prior to the implementation of the plan approved by theregional system board, the regional system board shall give notice of implementationof the plan to the governor, senate president, and the speaker of the house ofrepresentatives.

(c)  The decision of the regional system boardshall be the final decision with respect to the plan.  Implementation of theplan shall commence and continue, provided that no legislation is enacted that:

(1)  Requires the reinstatement and continuation ofthe direct patient care services that are subject to reduction or eliminationunder the plan; and

(2)  Includes an appropriation of additional moneys sufficientto adequately fund the mandated reinstatement and continuation of the subjectdirect patient care services. [L 1996, c 262, pt of §2; am L 2007, c 290, §34;am L 2009, c 182, §2]